Sunflower Sisters

Sunflower Sisters by Martha Hall Kelly  528 pages

This is the final book in the Lilac Girls or the Woolsey-Ferriday Trilogies

I fell in love with Martha Hall Kelly’s writing when her first book, “Lilac Girls” debuted. The second book, working backwards in time, was “Lost Roses.” And now this, the final story, has come along, which takes place during the American Civil War.

One thing I like about these novels is that they are truly standalones. They are about one family across history and other than the blood connection, there is no mention of the other relatives or protagonists in the other two books. Maybe that’s why author Hall-Kelly wrote them in reverse.

The book is told from three points of view. First is the main protagonist, Georgeanna “Georgy” Woolsey, a great-aunt to “Lilac Girls” Caroline Ferriday. Georgy ultimately becomes a nurse, serving during the Civil War. Hall Kelly takes readers right to the battle front without romanticizing the events or the war. Sometimes it was hard to read. Georgy believes her destiny is to open a nursing school for women.

The second point of view is from Jemma, a slave on the Peeler Plantation. She is brutalized and beaten, often to the breaking point. As life and white people conspire to make her life as hard as possible, Jemma pulls herself up and continues.

The third point of view is from Anne-May Wilson, mistress of the Peeler Plantation. She is meaner than any man could ever be to her slaves. Anne-May is in charge of running the tobacco fields until, and if, her husband and brother, fighting on opposite sides, return home. It’s no wonder that the slaves are constantly running away. Her brutality is legendary.

The story flows well and the characters are well-developed. From reading the Author’s Notes, I learned that most of the research was done through the Woolsey family letters. Georgy had six sisters and one brother. I highly recommend reading that last section as it provides some insight into the Woolsey family.

At first I was confused about the sunflowers; I wasn’t sure what they meant. Sunflowers were used to warn runaway slave of places that weren’t safe. They pop up in the book in several places.

At 528 pages, this is a massive book to undertake. I read it in a little over a week, it was that good. It’s been a couple of weeks since I finished “Sunflower Sisters” and I find myself missing these characters.

“Sunflower Sisters” receives 6 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.